


Our Sweet School Life Tales

by Sour_Queen



Category: Hakuouki
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-17
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:35:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 18,953
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24242164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sour_Queen/pseuds/Sour_Queen
Summary: Chizuru’s life has been turned upside down ever since she took Heisuke’s advice and applied to his formerly all-boys school as the only girl there. But, even with this crazy bunch, she’s happy to spend everyday with them exploring something new. And with one in particular, maybe something a little more…Okichi, Saichi, Hijichi, Sanochi, Heichi, Kazachi.
Relationships: Harada Sanosuke/Yukimura Chizuru, Hijikata Toshizou/Yukimura Chizuru, Kazama Chikage/Yukimura Chizuru, Okita Souji/Yukimura Chizuru, Saitou Hajime/Yukimura Chizuru, Toudou Heisuke/Yukimura Chizuru
Comments: 11
Kudos: 43





	1. I Need A Tutor!

Chapter 1 - I Need A Tutor!

A/N: I wanted to do a little drabble series to get out my ideas fantasies about the special Shisengumi group. Every MAIN route is going to get one short, don't want to reveal my favorites too soon. (Too late though, uwu)

* * *

She glanced over at Heisuke who stood pressed against her shoulder, his eyes squinting as if he still hadn't found his own name on the list. She already had, and he was in the top 30.

_Well,_ she smiled to herself wistfully, _Heisuke's always been a little ahead of me, even when we were kids..._

"That's really impressive Heisuke-kun, I'm happy for you!" she smiled gently at him. Heisuke glanced at her once and something of a light pink dusted his face at the praise.

He shrugged bashfully and looked away from Chizuru's face, hiding his smile. "I-It was no big deal, though I guess I could've done better if I had stopped playing so many video games after school...what about you Chizuru-san? How did you do?"

Her smile turned downward. "I was hoping...to do better, I suppose." She looked up at him, and forced a small laugh. "Math is not something I'm very good at all."

Heisuke grinned. Chizuru's embarrassed flush was something he would never tire of seeing. She tried very hard to be a perfectly competent girl, and he figured something like this probably affected her self-esteem more than she'd admit.

But, he wasn't too strong in math either. The truth is, the only likely reason he did so well was because he spent the last three days pouring over his notes and had a good retention memory. There wasn't a single thing on that test now, days later, that he could remember.

Heisuke scratched at this head. It wasn't too likely, but…"Ne, Chizuru, I'm not too good at studying either but...I know Saito-san sometimes offers study lessons in the library in the afternoon so maybe, he could help?"

Chizuru perked up immediately, standing straighter and with wider eyes. "Really? Do you really think he'll help _kouhai_? I don't really know him too well besides the trouble we caused him in the morning when we're late…"

Heisuke shuddered. Saito was a good guy and all, but he definitely took his responsibility in the Discipline Committee too seriously.

Still...he cleared his throat and placed a gentle hand on his childhood friend's shoulder with a very Heisuke-like grin. "I think he'll be willing to help you out. Go visit him in 2-A during lunch and see what he says! Worst is that he'll say no, right?"

Chizuru smiled brightly in return, the smile just too infectious to resist. Heisuke was too boyishly cute for his own good.

"I-I'll give it a try!"

* * *

Chizuru headed up to the second floor of the school the second lunch time commenced, assuring Heisuke to start on the bento box she made for him without waiting for her. She was immediately noticed among the older students standing in the hallway as she passed by, and couldn't help but feel a little small compared to their hierarchy...and that most of them were boys.

She still wasn't too strong-willed when it came to being seen and among so many men at one time. They looked at her with eyes that ranged between curiosity, to amusement, to..something else, she couldn't name. She would never admit it, but she always felt much more at ease walking the halls alongside Heisuke, or even Okita-senpai, when he could be bothered to come down to her homeroom to greet her.

Timidly, she approached the opened door of 2-A and peered in, searching for the inky-blue haired boy in the midst, but saw no one that matched. Deflated, she almost turned around until a strong hand wrapped itself around her middle and pulled her back close against a warm, hard surface.

"Now this is a rare sight...Chizuru-chan, you've come to see me?" Okita's voice, light in humor, rippled a deep vibration through her small body as he held her so close, and she couldn't help but redden immediately and squirm in his grasp.

She stuttered helplessly in his grasp and squirmed against him. "Noo, Okita-senpai, don't start teasing me already!"

His taunting grin widened and he leaned down to whisper in her ear, sending a chill down her spine. "Why? You don't like it?"

She whined and shrugged off his hold of her middle, following his lead inside the classroom where the other students crowded around each other and their desks, eating lunches and sharing stories. He snatched a chair and pulled it up beside his desk for Chizuru to sit.

She still had a faint blush on her face and wouldn't look him directly in the eye, instead focusing on over-smoothing the hems of her skirt as a distraction.

Souji couldn't help but smirk. This is why she fascinated him so much. "Well, if you aren't here for me, what else could've brought you up here to this room of noxious smelling idiots?"

His eyes twinkled when she let out a small giggle despite herself. The sound of her laugh would only encourage him.

"Actually, Okita-senpai, I was looking for Saito-senpai. I know you two sometimes eat lunch together, so maybe-"

"Mou~ Chizuru-chan, so it's the dark haired stoic type for you, huh?"

She reddened again. "N-No that's not-"

Souji sighed dramatically, putting a hand on his chest. "Who knew it'd be the best friend to betray me? Though I can't imagine why you be interested in a stuffy, boring, _short_ -"

A sudden hand tightened on Souji's shoulder making Chizuru squeal and Souji shiver just a little _._ The raven's thin nimble fingers squeezed enough to make him wince.

"Souji," he said warningly, "It's impolite to speak ill of others, especially in front of younger students." His voice was deep and even, but Chizuru could almost swear by a glint of humor reflecting in his eyes as he spoke.

Chizuru waved her hands placidly with a concerned face but Souji only shrugged off the hand and smirked upwards at him. The look made Chizuru relax a little. _They seem to irritate each other at times, but they really are close, I guess._

"Be gentle Hajime-kun, I bruise easy! Besides, I was doing you a favor here, keeping Chizuru-chan here busy while she waited for you." Souji glanced at her slyly and winked, causing her to fluster again and look down to avoid Saito's open-eyed look of confusion directed at her.

"You were waiting for me? Why?"

Chizuru fidgeted in her seat a little. She glanced around the room and saw their grouping caught the attention of more than a few guys in the room, and the glances embarrassed her. Likely to be expected, though. If Heisuke was as popular as he was with the first year students, then Okita and Saito doubly so...just in reputation alone. And as the only girl in the room, she was enough of an attention-grabber herself. She'd better make this quick then.

She stood suddenly, stumbling over her words while the two boys blinked in surprise. "W-Well, Saito-senpai, Heisuke-kun said that you were really good in math and sometimes helped other students and my results from the midterms weren't great and so, um, if you could...please tutor me sometime? I would really appreciate it!" She tripped over her words, and refused to look either of them in the eyes instead opting to bow deeply in front of Saito.

A careful touch on the head, something that felt like a pat made her raise her head in surprise. Okita gave her a gentle smile. "Now you're really stuck, Hajime-kun. There's no way to reject a cute girl who asks _that_ nicely."

Chizuru blushed and peered up at Saito whose own eyes were cast down in trepidation. After a moment's pause, he nodded in agreement softly.

"We can begin tomorrow after school, when there's no kendo club." His voice was calm, but she couldn't help but notice the uneasiness of his eyes, as if he didn't want to outright accept her plea.

_Maybe I'm inconveniencing him after all,_ she thought. But before she could open her mouth to apologize for being so forceful, Okita stood up from his desk and clasped her hand, pulling her towards the doorway entrance.

"If you're finished, I'll be taking her now. Let's go play a little Chizuru-chan," He tugged on her arm playfully as she sputtered, all but nearly being dragged out of the classroom and down the hall to Okita's sing-song teasing voice, "race me to the cafeteria, and when you lose you can buy me an-pan~"

She smiled gently. He was too good at learning how to break the tension for her. She'd have to thank him for his kindness soon.

* * *

The library was sparse when she walked inside, which Chizuru guessed would be normal as midterms were already over, and students were able to once again relax and go back to school activities. She found Saito in a corner at an empty table, looking outside the window down towards the students emptying through the front gates towards home. Saito rarely ever left school right away like she and Heisuke usually did, likely due to his work on the Discipline Committee or training with the Kendo Club.

He was always super busy, and watching his calm profile for once put a flutter in Chizuru's heart she couldn't explain. She smiled. It would be nice to finally be able to talk with him without interruption.

Her footsteps eventually alerted Saito as he looked up, expression as calm as ever. "Sit where you like. We'll begin when you're ready."

She paused, then reached out for the chair closest to him not noticing the small flinch and widening of Saito's eyes as she sat down and began rummaging through her bag for her notebooks. "I really appreciate your help with this Saito-kun, today in class I could barely keep up and I-ohh! Sorry." The book slipped right through her fingers and fell unceremoniously in the space between their chairs with a loud pat, interrupting her speech.

Chizuru flustered, already self-conscious after having just sat down. She apologized and reached down for it at the same time at Saito, and their fingers brushed against each other briefly.

_They're soft_ , she thought, before realizing her fingertips were still lingering and as she tried to snatch the book back in shame their heads rose up at the same time, smacking into each other in the process.

She winced and held her forehead. "I-I'm so sorry Saito-kun, are you OK? Did I hurt you?" Her speech became more and more rushed as she watched him wince and rub at his head. It almost looked like he was pouting, and she couldn't help but giggle after a moment at their situation.

He stared at her shocked for a moment...and then, his lips curled upwards bemusedly. It softened his face in ways Chizuru had no idea it could. He looked so much younger when he smiled.

She beamed back and cleared her throat nervously. "Then, I guess we should get started?"

Saito nodded and watched as she began to open her notebook.

* * *

Surprisingly, Chizuru's skill with math was just as clouded as ever even with someone as trained as Saito breaking it down for her. She had to hand it to him though, even after a full hour at this his tone never changed and he was as gracious as ever watching her retry the same problem for the third time.

She laughed nervously. "Ah, I messed up again. Sorry Saito-san, I don't mean to make you keep going over the same thing over and over with me." She turned her eyes downwards, sheepishly and looked at her wristwatch.

Chizuru could probably take up no more than thirty more minutes of his time now before the sun would begin to set and he likely had to go home. Her fingers tightened around her pencil anxiously. If only she could get this one problem right…

"Almost there," Saito coached, placing a finger on her pencil-smudged remarks on the paper. "Don't overthink, you understand the next step in this formula."

"The next step…" Chizuru echoed, following his finger. She looked back down at the paper. It's true she did, or at least, she thought she did. But if she was wrong…

_Well,_ she swallowed nervously, _I won't waste all of Saito-san's time teaching me by being hesitant when it really counts._

She placed her finger on the variable of the equation. "I'm solving here...right?" Saito shook his head almost imperceptibly, and gently took hold of her hand, directing her index finger to the variable on the right side of the equation. With a soft squeeze, he pushed her fingers down firmly to emphasize his point.

"Here. We want to solve this variable first before moving on." His voice was clear, even more so because he had leaned in closer towards her so that the edges of his breath felt like tickles on her ear and cheek. The proximity made Chizuru suddenly feel overwhelmed all at once, but he didn't move or let go of her hand. She turned to meet his eye and nearly collided into his face. He was so _close_!

And so serious too. It was like he was trying to really press into her mind to remember these steps in the formula, but the deep stare from his amazingly innocent blue eyes was all too much for her to even think clearly.

As if just now realizing how close their nose and lips were from each other, Saito flinched back immediately to release her hand and they both looked away, blushing furiously. He had his back to her now, so Chizuru took the opportunity and tried to fan her face, the burning image still in her mind of how soft his mouth looked just at that moment…

"My apologies, I didn't mean to overstep, I only-"

"N-No! I understand, you just wanted me to get it. I-I'm sorry too!"

Then neither spoke for a moment, and after a beat of silence it was Chizuru who actually straightened up and without looking him the eye she laughed softly. It was enough to get his shoulders to relax a little. Saito turned back to look at her incredulously. She was still embarrassed, but gave him a shy smile and twiddled the mechanical pencil in her hands.

"You're very helpful Saito-san. I know I'm a slow learner, but I hope you continue to tutor me in the future." Her tone was sincere. The kind of sincerity that he always admired about Chizuru.

It made Saito's shoulders lax a little, and he flustered a bit at her praise but didn't shy away from her eyes, nodding slightly.

Chizuru scooted her chair a little closer with renewed vigor. If Saito was going to go so far for her sake, she should really be putting her best effort into this too! So she started back to scribbling in the notebook and mumbling to herself, unaware of the blush creeping across Saito's face...or the mysterious camera shutter click coming from the bookshelves behind them.

* * *

Boom! And we are complete. Stay tuned for the next one, and please drop a review if you liked it!

SQ~


	2. I Need A Break!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chizuru’s life has been turned upside down ever since she took Heisuke’s advice and applied to his formerly all-boys school as the only girl there. But, even with this crazy bunch, she’s happy to spend everyday with them exploring something new. And with one in particular, maybe something a little more…Okichi, Saichi, Hijichi, Sanochi, Heichi, Kazachi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Writing these make me feel better about my life.
> 
> ............

Chizuru sighed heavily as she put away the bucket and mop in the closet and tightened the lock on the cabinet door. Brushing the sweaty strands of hair out of her face she tightened her school jacket around her slim waist, smiling in accomplishment. “All done!”

Finally, her classroom work was done for the day and she could feel the ache in her arms and legs. It wasn’t a bad ache per say, but since this was an all boys’ school until recently, the chores demanded were rather strenuous for a girl her size…

She turned to her side and looked out the window, admiring the pretty colors of the setting sun of orange and purple in the clear sky. It would be summer break soon, and then she could finally spend some time outside enjoying something other than homework.

Maybe Heisuke and I can go somewhere fun, she mused. It’s been awhile since I’ve been able to talk to him without distractions.

Another sigh escaped her lips, this time sounding a little forlorn. True, she did get to spend time with Heisuke in the mornings on the way to school and at lunch, but lately he’s been taking his time to focus on kendo and didn’t have much time for her lately. She couldn’t blame him though. All his energy and athleticism was a prize among any lucky team, and she didn’t have talent in any of those things so…

“Lucky~ I’ve caught Chizuru-chan all alone,” that signature teasing voice drawled and she snapped out of her daze and looked up at the classroom entrance where Okita-senpai stood, leaning against the door with his arms crossed loosely over his chest. 

Chizuru flustered, then gave him a friendly smile. “Okita-senpai, I thought you’d have gone home by now...”

He shrugged and rolled his eyes, grinning mischievously. “And I would’ve, but unfortunately for me I had to visit the teacher's lounge today.” 

I guess Hijikata-sensei got to him again this week. Chizuru laughed awkwardly and felt the afternoon breeze through the windows cool her beading sweat. She looked around. “I was just leaving for the day, it was my turn for the after school chores and so...” she trailed off, suddenly feeling like she was talking too much as she caught the faraway state in Okita’s eyes. 

Is something bothering him?

“And so, you’re alone?” His voice pulled her out of her thoughts as she watched him again, straightening up and walking towards her, height towering over hers. She forgot how tall her senpai really is sometimes. He gave her a soft smirk, eyes twinkling in mischief. “Finally, something interesting...ne, Chizuru-chan, let’s walk home together?”

She started to blush at the tone of his voice, making it sound so casual and intimate. His teasing frustrated her to no end sometimes, but it was hard to fight against someone like Okita. He was still so pleasant and comforting to be around, and Chizuru would be lying if she said that it didn’t help how really beautiful he looked... 

Chizuru shuddered involuntarily, and shook her head to clear her thoughts. “I don’t know, Okita-senpai, I don’t want to burden you. B-Besides, I’m sure Saito-senpai would much more enjoy your company helping out with the kendo club instead…”

As soon as she said it, she wished she hadn’t. The teasing smile from Okita’s face dropped completely and he backed away from her slowly, the cheery air between them suddenly gone tense.

“I don’t really feel like going today.” he turned his back half toward her, a smile on his lips but a half-annoyed look in his eyes. She inwardly kicked herself. 

It was the same blunt avoidance that Saito gave her whenever she mentioned Okita and kendo in the same sentence. Heisuke had been cautious about it too. She heard the hall whispers. Apparently Okita had always been a frail person, and whatever has been ailing him has now become powerful enough to stop him from even pursuing his desires with the school dojo now. This happens sometimes. Perhaps being separated from everyone like this was making him feel just as lonely as she had been…

She shook her head and steeled herself. “Okita-senpai...um...actually--”

He glanced at her sideways as if just remembering where he was and what he was doing. HIs green eyes were piercing right into her. 

“Hm?”

She swallowed. “I...would actually really like some company going home, if you’re okay with it being me.”

It took a moment for her words to sink in. For a second, she swore she had actually managed to catch Okita off guard for once, the surprise written all over his face. Then, he looked relaxed. She was right then. Maybe they both needed the distraction.

Okita’s eyes twinkled mischievously. “Alright, just be sure to keep up with me, okay?”

\------

Chizuru realized a few blocks ago that they were not headed in the direction of their neighborhood. Okita and his family had moved to the same area as she and Heisuke had lived in for years but she was sure he knew the area well enough. They were headed somewhere else. 

From the direction she guessed...the riverbank, perhaps. Not that she minded...she felt at ease walking a few paces behind him and in view of his back. Even in the fair weather and lack of wind, he still wore his outer green sweater without complaint. She wondered if he was always cold.

“Okita-senpai…”

Okita threw a look at her over his shoulder. “You know, we’re not on school grounds anymore. I want you to call me Souji.”

She flustered immediately. “I-I couldn’t….we’re a year apart...and it would be rude...”

He raised an eyebrow. “What’s wrong? Don’t want to?”

Okita’s innocent stare brought shivers down her spine. He had stopped walking without notice and she almost walked right into his back. She looked up at him, and held back a gasp at what looked like a little bit of sadness in his eyes. She could never tell what he was thinking, and it was frustrating, but she still couldn’t stop blushing and she knew she just wanted to please him somehow.

Her hands clutched at her skirt and she looked at the ground. “Then...how about...Souji..san…”

At that it looked like the ice had melted away from his face, and a warm and teasing smile enveloped his face instead. “What was that? I’m sorry, I couldn’t hear you just now.”

He chuckled as she raised her eyes to glare at him finally, aware that she had walked into another of his little tricks. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and the other hand curled itself under her chin to tilt her head forward to meet his gaze. Okita--no, Souji’s--arm held her steady, and she knew she wasn’t going to escape so easily.

So frustrating. She tried to avert his intense gaze. “Please...O-Okita-san…”

“Hm? Sounds different than what you said before.”

“...S-Souji-san….” Her cheeks were burning hot with embarrassment. 

She felt his hold on her slack suddenly and looked up to see him, the teasing smile on his face replaced by something more demure and kind of...pleased? She couldn’t imagine that just the sound of his name from her intrigued him so much, but he was the type who enjoyed the discomfort of others so maybe this was just another small victory for him.

Instead, he closed his eyes gently, as if savoring the moment. “Sounds nice…”

Chizuru blushed, but suddenly saw how close they were and jumped back, almost tripping over her feet. “You’re teasing me again, Souji-san.”

He shook his head negatively, but didn’t answer, only turning his back on her once more to follow ahead on the grainy path a few more meters, and Chizuru could now feel the weak breeze of the city’s river and see the purplish sunset light reflect off the waters. Souji stopped in front of a vending machine beside a bench and leant down to view the drink options.

“Thirsty, Chizuru?”

She looked down at her feet and in her self-assessment realized that she was getting a little bit hot in her uniform again. Hopefully soon, the school would be switching to their summer uniforms soon. She nodded softly, and walked towards Souji, the backlights of the vending machine highlighting his brown hair and green eyes.

“What are you having to drink?”

“Something sweet,” he grinned, “You should decide as well, this one seems a bit more expensive than the others.”

Her blush came back full force. He made her think he was going to treat her! Her skin bristled as she watched Souji chuckle at her expense. She huffed loudly and turned her face away from him as his drink plunked in the dispense window of the machine. 

She began to walk down the sloping grass of the riverbank before the ground under her slipped under her school flats and she suddenly lost grip and she started falling backwards and sliding down the hill. Her initial gasp turned to a higher-pitched shriek which grabbed the attention of Souji as he turned his attention to her for a moment before barreling towards her slipping form.

She reached out a hand to him, still shrieking. “Wah--!!”

Souji threw himself forward with the weight in his entire body and grabbed her hand, pulling her close to his body as they both rolled down the hill like a wrapped rug, but Souji made sure to close her body around his so he took the brunt of the blows down the hill. 

Chizuru clenched her eyes closed, and with the final blow they hit the plateau of the field, her head knocking into something...hard, but...warm? Chizuru felt her hands clench onto the hard surface full of strong lines before her mind could catch up…

“Chizuru-chan, you’re holding onto me kind of tightly here. Do I feel good?” She could feel Souji’s breath just on the edge of the outer shell of her ear, teasingly so. The blush crept across her skin almost at once. She could feel him, though she would never admit that it was more pleasant than she could’ve imagined. Their bodies were so close, almost like they could...

It forced her eyes open and she could finally see her position. Her hands here clenched on Souji’s sweater and her skirt was riding rather high on her thighs with her external limbs intertwined with his. Having him under her like this made her stomach lurch with...something. She was sure a wrong move would’ve turned into something else, so she stayed as still as possible. They had rolled away the way down the bottom of the riverbank hill, with only the geese of the lake to witness their embarrassing position. After a shaky breath, she began to adjust.

“U-Um! Sorry Souji-san, I-I didn’t mean--” She stuttered over her words and she tumbled backward off him, nestling her bottom into the grass surrounding them, and she blushed furiously as Souji took his time sitting up and brushing off his clothes nonchalantly. She couldn’t fight her rapidly beating heart. He probably thought the worst of her now…

“Here,” his voice erased her thoughts immediately. Her head snapped in his direction and she saw his outstretched hand holding a can with a napkin wrapped around it. It was cool to the touch, and she was grateful. She looked at Souji’s face but he refused to meet her gaze just then, opting to glare at the grassy ground and blushed slightly. It was strawberry milk. She couldn’t help but beam at him. It was unlike him to be so thoughtful, after all. It was just kind of strange that he knew that.

Is he...embarrassed? She couldn’t hide the incredulous look on her face as she reached out her right hand to accept the drink. Their fingers brushed against each other briefly, but it was enough to make all the hairs on her skin stand on end. And his face has gone pink too.

A weird reaction, she surmised, but still she couldn’t meet him eye-to-eye as she scurried a few paced away from him to sit at his side rather than nearly on top of him, and for a moment neither of them said anything as they watched the still river glisten the rays of the sun in their small, bustling city and sipped their drinks. 

Finally, Chizuru found her voice to speak up. It was time to return his kindness. “Um...O-Okit-no, um, Souji-san..?”

“Hmm?” He echoed, and it was unsure if he was really paying attention to her, but she decided to push forward anyway. 

“I-I don’t mean to be rude but...I appreciate you looking after me today. A-and, if it means anything to you, I think you are important no matter what...I’m sure your friends and teammates think so too. I believe you’ll go back to them soon. Please don’t give up just yet.” She wrapped her arms around her legs, and looked out across the river, hair fluttering against her cheeks in the oncoming breeze. 

He might not believe her, but she meant every word. Okita Souji was important. He was different. And she believed in his spirit.

Suddenly, she felt her arm pulled towards him. Chizuru gasped but fell sideways against him, her head once again crushing in towards that sturdy, warm chest of his but this time he wrapped his arms around her encouragingly, one hand immediately intertwining itself into her hair. She panicked. This was too much, but yet she didn’t want to move away either and her clenching fists against his chest loosening to grasp his sweater again, drained of energy.

She wriggled against his body but then realized that this was purposeful, not an accident. So she stilled her body, and eventually closed her eyes against him, the steady rhythm of his heartbeat rushing to the ears more convincing than any of her excuses. It feels familiar somehow…

They didn’t move. Chizuru felt herself absolutely enchanted by the sound of his heartbeat, the breeze of the sky and the view of the water. The sun was now entirely disappearing from the sky, and it was getting harder to see Souji’s outline beside her. But she was hesitant to move. It felt so safe.

Finally, he spoke. “Chizuru-chan?”

She ‘hmm’ed in response feeling sleepiness pull at her conscious, her hand curling around his bicep as she unconsciously burrowed herself further into his chest and sweet smelling sweater, freshly washed. She didn’t want to move, but she knew she had to, and so she began to sit up and pull herself away from Souji when he spoke up again, this time with no teasing in his voice.

“Thank you.” He whispered softly, his hand moving in her hair to the top of her head, patting it softly. Chizuru’s blush returned full force and she almost felt dizzy being in close contact with Souji like this and nearly falling asleep in his lap. Thankfully, consciousness took over and she thought against anything further, putting a few meters between them. 

They met each other’s gazes and blushed when their eyes met. What now?

Chizuru shook her head, and let out a sigh. There was no need to reply, anyway. She was glad her feelings got across.

The sun had finally gone down completely and darkness now surrounded them even as the street lights turned on one by one. Some things didn’t need to be said. And besides….

She was glad to view the day end with him by her side. They’d have to go home soon but…but…

“For now, I would be very happy just to sit under the twilight sky with you,” she murmured. She missed the increased redness on Souji’s face or the widening of his eyes, since her eyes never tore from the serene atmosphere before her. So he cleared his throat--stifling an oncoming cough-- and settled shoulder-to-shoulder with her. 

For now, the truth didn’t matter. Harsh realities be damned. And maybe Chizuru was right, he reasoned, smiling while looking at her soft profile. She wasn’t looking at him anymore but it didn’t matter. So for now, he decided not to elaborate and instead enjoy the view while they had it. He placed a calming hand in her thick hair.

And they watched the sky turn dark together.

..............


	3. I Need A Guide!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chizuru’s life has been turned upside down ever since she took Heisuke’s advice and applied to his formerly all-boys school as the only girl there. But, even with this crazy bunch, she’s happy to spend everyday with them exploring something new. And with one in particular, maybe something a little more…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I’m about to take a 10 hour drive down the interstate from NJ to OH to start a new life and escape my family environment. Before that, I wanted to write this.

The school halls were empty. The classroom, empty. The front yard, empty. The further Chizuru wandered around the school, the more she began to panic. Where was everyone?!

Eventually, she wandered around by herself in her school shoes to the gym, following the empty sound of deep, vibrational voices. Male voices, she noted, and she swallowed thickly and opened the heavy door towards her. Inside, all the lights were on in the gymnasium and it was full of guys.

Shirtless. Handsome. Guys.

Her face turned a violent shade of red. They were everywhere! It had to be every male student in the school, all toting around in a musky haze of supple skin and hard abs. She was ashamed of looking, but couldn’t help herself even as she covered her eyes with her hands immediately. 

“Oi, Chizuru? What are you doing here?” She recognized that voice, but as she lowered her hands over her eyes she regretted it, seeing Heisuke in full form completely nude from the waist up.

Had he always been so…?

She shook her head rapidly, feeling dizzy. Heisuke raised an eyebrow at her, then smiled. “Hey, you didn’t answer me. Why are you here? Today’s our medical examinations.”

She gasped, and her eyes widened. Heisuke noted her surprised look and chuckled. “You didn’t check your agenda calendar today, did you?”

Realizing her mistake, Chizuru shook her head and focused her eyes on the ground. Suddenly, a few calls of her name called her attention and she looked up, seeing Shinpachi and Harada-sensei walking towards her, with friendly smiles on their faces. She blushed again. At least Harada-sensei was still fully clothed.

“What do you think, Chizuru-chan? This is how a true man should look! You amateursThe school halls were empty. The classroom, empty. The front yard, empty. The further Chizuru wandered around the school, the more she began to panic. Where was everyone?!

Eventually, she wandered around by herself in her school shoes to the gym, following the empty sound of deep, vibrational voices. Male voices, she noted, and she swallowed thickly and opened the heavy door towards her. Inside, all the lights were on in the gymnasium and it was full of guys.

Shirtless. Handsome. Guys.

Her face turned a violent shade of red. They were everywhere! It had to be every male student in the school, all toting around in a musky haze of supple skin and hard abs. She was ashamed of looking, but couldn’t help herself even as she covered her eyes with her hands immediately. 

“Oi, Chizuru? What are you doing here?” She recognized that voice, but as she lowered her hands over her eyes she regretted it, seeing Heisuke in full form completely nude from the waist up.

Had he always been so…?

She shook her head rapidly, feeling dizzy. Heisuke raised an eyebrow at her, then smiled. “Hey, you didn’t answer me. Why are you here? Today’s our medical examinations.”

She gasped, and her eyes widened. Heisuke noted her surprised look and chuckled. “You didn’t check your agenda calendar today, did you?”

Realizing her mistake, Chizuru shook her head and focused her eyes on the ground. Suddenly, a few calls of her name called her attention and she looked up, seeing Shinpachi and Harada-sensei walking towards her, with friendly smiles on their faces. She blushed again. At least Harada-sensei was still fully clothed.

“What do you think, Chizuru-chan? This is how a true man should look! You amatuers should be aiming for this level of fitness!!” Shinpachi-sensei howled playfully, flexing his muscles in plain view for her to witness. She covered her eyes again in embarrassment and missed Harada-sensei smack Shinpachi-sensei over the head with his clipboard and Heisuke something like, “Baka Shinpatsu-san!” before they competitively flexed their muscles.

So she bowed deeply. “I’m sorry Shinpachi-sensei, Harada-sensei. I forgot today were physical exams. I think I’m supposed to be…” she trailed off, suddenly realizing she couldn’t remember.

“Yase Gakuen,” Harada-sensei supplied helpfully, golden eyes glinted in amusement at her embarrassing state. She probably looked like a lamb amongst all these wolves to him. He took a step before her, dark collar shirt wrinkling slightly against his movements. Chizuru hid a gasp in her throat as his large hand clasped her right shoulder, eyes boring into her.

“Do you know how to get there? It’s in the neighborhood but...if you’re confused then…” he trailed off, looking away from her face for a moment which stunned Chizuru for a moment as he contemplated. He seemed a little hesitant, but the warmth of his hand was distracting her, and she craned her neck toward it subconsciously, feeling at ease by it in the midst of her confusion.

Heisuke snapped her out of her daze by shouting. “N-Not necessary, Harada-senpai! I’ll take her myself! I don’t trust any of you!” He waved his arms to emphasize his point, trying to get Harada to take his hands off of her.

She blinked as Harada-sensei obliged and stepped back. “But Heisuke-kun, you still have your exams too…” She trailed off when she noticed the soft blushing of his cheeks and his refusal to meet her eyes. He flailed again for a moment then cleared his throat, feigning nonchalance. 

“J-Just wait for me! At least twenty more minutes okay? Then I’ll walk you to Yase okay?” He walked two steps towards her, and even though they were almost of the same height, the tone of his voice and his half-nudeness made her shrink under him. She nodded solemnly and smiled at him, before he nodded and waved himself off. He hadn’t been this overprotective in awhile. She was surprised.

She bowed to everyone there, and sent her well wishes to Okita and Saito-senpai before walking outside the gym, taking a seat on the steps and watching others step past her, waiting for Heisuke.

\------

It didn’t matter what was going on, she always felt at ease besides Heisuke and especially when they walked somewhere together. Their paces matched evenly, and there was no tension in the air to say something just to fill the silence. Being beside him felt natural.

Only, a comfort like thing took more than ten years to develop.

She remembered her Father being particularly sweet on Heisuke for some reason as a child, and back then she didn’t know why but now she was glad for it. Heisuke was an illegitimate child of a wealthy family, and because of his parentage he couldn’t join the main family but instead was left to the family’s main caregiver and given a sizable fund to live off of until he matured. Despite this, Heisuke never sulked or complained; he always came over to the Yukimura Clinic smiling and ready to play.

Chizuru smiled. She really was glad for Heisuke living beside her and being her friend. She could never admit her loneliness without him.

Heisuke suddenly looked back at her over his shoulder. “Chizuru? You’re kinda quiet today,” he commented.

She shook her head negatively. “Sorry Heisuke-kun, I was just spacing out. Thank you again for walking me to Yase, I know how busy you are.”

Heisuke colored slightly and sputtered. “W-Well...I guess, but, you know..I don’t mind helping you out. Sorry you had to see that mess earlier.”

Mess? Her thoughts recalled their earlier situation and the taut skin of her childhood friend came back to view in full force. Her face felt hot. She had no idea he had developed that way and she felt bad for staring…

“We’re here,” Heisuke turned the corner and Yase Gakuen came into view. The truth is, Chizuru probably could’ve managed herself since Yase was still in the vicinity of their neighborhood and she knew her two friends Kosuzu and Sen who attended there but, having Heisuke there put the butterflies of actually going inside at ease.

They walked to the gate and Heisuke suddenly stopped and turned to look at her seriously. 

“Ne, Chizuru….” he trailed off, looking for her to meet his gaze.

Chizuru felt herself shrink unconsciously. Heisuke was giving her a strange, serious look for once that wasn’t usual for him. She tried to smile, encouraging him to continue.

“I know how busy I’ve been...and, I just want you to know, that I will keep my promise to you. Whenever you need me, just please tell me...you can depend on me too!” He ended his sentence with a shout, but she watched him clench his school jacket tightly as if he expected her to say something harsh.

She felt her eyes grow wet with oncoming tears. Sure, she could admit that Heisuke was not around her as often with all of his extra duties lately, but it wasn’t fair of her to be so dependent on him for his company either. What could she say to reach him? As the silence dragged on she could feel Heisuke get more and more nervous as she played out a thousand scenarios in her mind. Then, suddenly, she beamed a smile at him as the idea struck her.

The brilliance of Chizuru’s smile took Heisuke back immediately. “Um…”

“Thank you, Heisuke-kun, for always being there to help me.” She could see his mouth open in protest so she rushed her next sentence. “If it’s alright with you, then please come back for me too after the examinations. I’d like to walk with you again back to Hakuou Gakuen.”

The request caught Heisuke off-guard so Chizuru got a full look at his blushing face before he coughed into his hand, weakly trying to hide his surprise. It made her want to giggle, so she did. And eventually, Heisuke relaxed his shoulders and pumped a fist into the air. “You got it Chizuru! I’ll be right here when it’s all over.”

“Okay!” She nodded and bowed to him, before turning to walk through the front yard of Yase. 

\----------

The sun was setting by the time Chizuru had finished up and messaged Heisuke because she guiltily spent some time with Kosuzu and Sen. They introduced her to all of their friends, who all seemed similarly shocked when they learned she was attending Hakuou Gakuen as the only female student. She could only laugh; it did seem like a courageous thing to do, but then again they didn’t know her classmates like she did either.

Heisuke was standing by the front gates as promised, a slight glossy look on his face like sweat catching her attention. Had he been running here? She hurried her pace and waved goodbye to Sen-chan, who had her own club activities to attend to for the rest of the afternoon. He gave her a cheerful smile as she approached him.

“How was it?” He asked, as they fell into their usual pace, walking away from the school building. 

She shrugged. “I’m sure just like yours. It was nice seeing Sen and Kosuzu though,” she smiled absently at the thought.

He glanced up at her quickly. “Do you wish you had gone here? You know, be with them...other girls your age?”

The question made Chizuru stop in her tracks. Heisuke was already a few feet away or two when he noticed and he turned around nervously, afraid that he said something wrong again. Chizuru’s eyes were downcast, and she spoke her next sentence with a soft voice. “Is this because I’m bothering you by attending Hakuou?”

Heisuke shook his head and closed the small gap between them, hands squeezing her small shoulders tightly as he spoke. “T-That’s not what I meant! I’m only saying because...you know, it’s got to be a little bit lonely being around guys all the time and I’m not there as much for you and I just--”

Chizuru stared at Heisuke’s face as he continued to ramble on in apology, and for the second time today she really looked at him. His larger hands, his slightly chapped lips, his dusty turquoise eyes. He had grown in so many ways and yet, to hear that he still worried about her and cared so much…

She leaned her head forward and bumped foreheads with Heisuke gently, enough to cut off his speech. She could feel his radiating heat immediately and couldn’t remember the last time they were this close together. Maybe as children. But, the fluttering in her chest reminded her solemnly that she wasn’t a child anymore.

His eyes softened, and she bore into them and smiled gently. “I’m happy at Hakuou, Heisuke-kun. I’m happy with Okita-senpai and Saito-senpai and Kaoru...our teachers Harada-sensei and Shinpachi-sensei, and you Heisuke-kun. I promise.”

Heisuke closed his eyes, as if savoring the moment, and then he released her shoulders and she staggered back while keeping her eyes locked on his and instinctively, they intertwined fingers together and then laughed.

“I’ll protect you forever Chizuru, so stay with us, okay?”

Chizuru raised their joined hands between them, as proof of their promise. They grinned at each other. Just like when we were kids. “Okay!”  



	4. I Need A Distraction!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chizuru’s life has been turned upside down ever since she took Heisuke’s advice and applied to his formerly all-boys school as the only girl there. But, even with this crazy bunch, she’s happy to spend everyday with them exploring something new. And with one in particular, maybe something a little more…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Cozy sweet new apartment meets cozy, sweet romance drabble. Enjoy.

“Rise!”

The scrapings of chairs against the hardwood floors woke Chizuru out of her half-asleep daze.  _ Already…?  _ She clumsily got to her feet.

"Attention!”

She hadn’t been paying attention to any of the last few minutes of Harada-senpai’s lesson, letting the lull of his low voice help her drift off into her thoughts. She yawned into her palm. 

“Bow!”

Chizuru bowed deeply as the sounds of the school bell rang through the halls, and classes were now finished for the day. She let out a sigh of relief. She was running on little sleep from the night before, working hard to stitch together the maid outfit for the festival that was coming up, and soon too. She didn’t really have time to spare. 

Thankfully, not having any additional club activities made this easier for her to go straight home and begin, although she missed stopping by the dojo to talk with Heisuke and the others.

Chizuru fought off another yawn. “Too late to complain now...they’re all counting on me. I at least do this much,” she zipped up her bag, and was preparing to hoist the bag over her shoulder when a voice called out to her suddenly.

“Yukimura? Ah, you’re still here. Hey, do you mind taking these papers back to the teacher’s room for me?” It was the wafting scent of his cologne that caught her attention before she had a change to look up.  _ Mild and clean…  _ It was such a nice smell. Chizuru shivered slightly.

She looked up and saw Harada-sensei walking towards her. His necktie already loosened and the top buttons of his collared shirt exposed a small but enticing piece of his collarbone and strong chest. 

She could see the drips of sweat around his brow and the soaked ends of his hair clinging to his skin. Chizuru breath hitched in her throat. The classroom had already emptied but the two of them now.

She tried to hide her thoughts behind a smile. It wasn’t too often that she got a chance to speak with him one-on-one like this, and she always liked how kind he was with her during their homeroom class. She didn’t get to  _ really _ look at him so often, and all the thoughts came rushing towards her at once. 

A slight blush started to don her cheeks despite herself, and it made Harada lift an eyebrow, amused.

Shaking her head, she set her bag back down on the desk. She could come back for it later.

“Sure, I can help.” At that, Harada smiled back at her relieved. 

“Thanks, it’d really be a big help. I have a quick errand to run but I’ll be back shortly, okay?” He winked at her, increasing her blush and then turned back to the front of the room where she could see the towering stack of paperwork on the desk he walked past.

Her eyes widened slightly. It looked kind of heavy…

“Chizuru?” Her head snapped up. She didn’t realize he hadn’t quite left the room yet, and he must have seen her hesitation.

He smacked himself in the head loudly and sighed, striding back towards her and the desk. “Honestly, I can be such an idiot sometimes...here, we’ll go together, okay?”

Ignoring her protests, he picked up the majority of the stack easily by himself, leaving Chizuru to scramble behind him in an effort to keep up with his pace and the small stack he left behind for her to carry. They walked side-by-side down the hallway in silence, besides the occasional quick glances they threw at each other.

“I guess even I get too used to having only guys around...it’s not right to ask a lady to carry heavy things alone.” He muttered to himself, but it made Chizuru smile. Only her sensei would be so concerned about protecting women even in this age. She peered up at him again, noting the difference between their height and girth. He made even heavy things seem like nothing.

Inside the teacher’s lounge, it was rather noisy despite being nearly empty. Shinpachi-sensei had his headphones in and was whining loudly while listening assumedly to another horse race. The sight of him crumbling to his knees in desperation made Harada sigh again for the second time and Chizuru giggled as she followed him to his desk. Shinpachi didn’t even seem to notice either of them.

After they both set their piles down at his desk, she neatly started to tidy up his workspace, organizing his pens and folders and making quick work of his mess. Chizuru missed the licentious look in his eyes.

As Harada watched her for a moment and nodded, impressed. “You’re really good at stuff like that, Chizuru. You’ll make a good wife someday for sure.”

Chizuru immediately reddened in embarrassment, almost dropping the folders in hand. Her mouth opened to protest the compliment but was quickly silenced by Shinpachi groaning again in agony and pounding on the floor with his fists. 

Harada jerked a thumb at him. “Let’s go before he sees us and decides to whine to us about his losses too,” she smiled, tucked away the last of his papers and let his hand on the small of her waist nudge her towards the exit. 

Closing the door to the teacher’s lounge he looked down at her again as they stood in the hallway, and he stepped back from her an inch, she noticed with a frown. Formal as ever.

“So, Chizuru...are you going home now?”

She blinked and nodded. “Yes...unless you needed something else Harada-senpai?” Her head cocked to the side curiously as she watched something of a small blush adorn his cheeks and he looked away quickly. 

“Well, no I just…” he trailed off, and just stood there silently. Finally, he cleared his throat and tried again. “I have to work late tonight, so I was going to stop at the convenience store for snacks and well, since you helped me out I would at least like to treat you to something nice. High school girls like sweets still, right?”

Chizuru blushed meekly, warmed that he was trying to be considerate of her but she still could feel the invisible boundary he kept seeming to put between them. He was her sensei of course, but…

Nodding her head, she gave him a small smile. “I wouldn’t mind...Oh! But I was supposed to work on the maid uniform tonight...I want it to be ready well in advance for the festival. Everyone is trying so hard...so I know I need to...as well….” She chewed at her lip absently, thoughts torn between her wants and responsibilities.

Harada palmed a hand through his hair. “I see. I’m not the only one who has been working you hard, huh? Honestly, I  _ really  _ am an idiot sometimes.” 

Chizuru blinked slowly. “Harada-senpai?”

For the third time that afternoon, Harada let out a drawn out sigh. Then, with an index finger lifted to her lips he gave her a soft smirk as Chizuru’s face exploded in red. 

“Just come with me for a bit, okay? I’ll treat you to something nice, and give you a break. Just don’t mention this to anyone else. It’ll be our little secret.” He ended the last bit in a whisper, winking mischievously as she sputtered in embarrassment. The look on her face of pure shock was only too much to keep a straight face for him, and he started to chuckle despite himself.

“It isn’t nice to tease Harada-senpai...” She scolded weakly from her heart racing. She was still flustered and now pouting. But his chuckling made her smile inwardly as a devious thought crossed her mind.  _ Two can play that game then… _

She softly grasped at the hand pulling away from her face, this time giving it an experimental squeeze and effectively silencing his laughter as a look of shock crossed his features. She smiled teasingly. 

“I just need to grab my bag from the classroom and then I’ll be happy to go with you,  _ Sanosuke-san.” _

__

Chizuru almost failed to hold in her giggle while watching his face turn almost as bright as his hair in embarrassment. He pulled back from her grip and stood flabbergasted as she simply turned and started heading back the way they came.

__

“O-Oi--!”

__

“It’s our little secret, remember?” She looked back at him and winked, still walking away putting a sway in her hips for extra emphasis. His sputtering behind her made it  _ so _ worth it and the sounds of him mumbling furiously under his breath finally made her giggles come forth. She wouldn’t push him too much further than this today. He was giving her a break, after all.

__

A  _ much  _ needed break.

__

\--------

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Thank you! This fanfic has no BETA, so if you see any mistakes, please let me know! And leave a review!

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	5. I Need A Ride!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chizuru’s life has been turned upside down ever since she took Heisuke’s advice and applied to his formerly all-boys school as the only girl there. But, even with this crazy bunch, she’s happy to spend everyday with them exploring something new. And with one in particular, maybe something a little more…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Would Hijikata ever do something like this? I dunno. I like to imagine he can break a few rules when he wants to, and his skill with the stick shift is just…=u-u=

\---------------

It was raining today. Pouring, really, leaving most outdoor club activities canceled for the day and giving the sky a drab, grey look. Throughout class Chizuru felt rather sluggish today too, so much that even Heisuke noticed her slouching during lunchtime as they walked down the hall to the cafeteria together.

“Chizuru, are you sure you’re feeling okay? We can skip lunch and go to the infirmary instead?” Heisuke probed in question as he glanced sideways at her, frowning when he saw the faraway look in her eyes. It took her a moment to register that he had even spoken to her.

Her head perked up and she flushed in embarrassment. “N-No, I’m fine Heisuke, really. I think I’m just a little tired today that’s all...I still would like to have lunch with you and Okita-senpai.” She gave him a small smile.

Heisuke eyed her wearily. “I guess...I know that you have been busy with your class’ festival booth but...I told you, if you need help just tell me, okay?” She nodded in acknowledgement and they stopped in front of the doors of the cafeteria as he opened them for them both. Her eyes scanned the seats until she saw the familiar set of brown hair and striking green eyes. He raised a hand in greeting as they approached the table.

“Aaah, Chizuru-chan, finally! I’m really hungry today so I hope you didn’t hold back,” Okita smirked at her, eyeing the bag she held in her left hand and the blush already turning her skin pink.

She held out the bag to him wordlessly as she and Heisuke sat down. It wasn’t too uncommon for Chizuru to make food for Heisuke when she knew he was neglecting his health for his clubs or when she wanted to thank him, but this would be the first time she had ever made lunch for Okita. Heisuke wasn’t too happy to hear about it, but didn’t stop her. 

“I-I hope you like it…” She said shyly, peering at her senpai from under her lashes, completely oblivious to Heisuke’s blushing face and Okita’s half-grin. They were all soundless as Okita took out the lunches from the bag and passed them out accordingly. Green, Pink, Orange.

She hoped Okita noticed she left out the green onions this time, and that Heisuke appreciated the extra onigiri. Small things she wanted to do to show how much she cherished their friendship. She smiled despite the weariness in her body, happy.

\----

It never stopped raining through the entire afternoon. It didn’t cancel Kendo club, so Heisuke still had to part from her right at the end of classes for the day, and she still had a few loose ends to tie up regarding the festival booth’s preparations. There was a need for better sewing tools that she had been meaning to buy from the store on the way home but...with all this rain it’s just---

“...It’s pretty unlucky,” she finished aloud, fitting her feet into her outdoor shoes and packing her school shoes away in her locker for the day. She stared out past the entrance of the building at the grey, monotonous onslaught of rain covering everything outside. Suddenly, her brain picked up the sounds of light footsteps that she assumed to be Saito’s at this time, but when she looked up, it was another dark-haired figure.

“H-Hijikata-senpai!” She exclaimed, hoping he hadn’t caught her staring off into space a few moments ago. He peered down at her while walking by and stopped in his tracks, sighing.

“Yukimura,” he breathed, looking around and noticing the hallways mostly empty. “Why are you just standing there? No umbrella?”

She shook her head in the negative. “I forgot one today, actually. And I was supposed to run an errand before going home too...pretty bad luck, huh?” She laughed softly, smiling gently at Hijikata who straightened up suddenly, nodding in understanding.

“I see...well, what will you do until the rain stops?”

Chizuru paused, palming at the ends of her skirt in consideration. “I...I guess I’ll wait here. I’m sure it’ll clear up soon enough. What about you, Hijikata-sensei?”

Her eyes flitted up at him innocently and he cleared his throat, absently scratching the back of his head. “Kondou-san needs some papers delivered to his home, so I was going to head out.” He suddenly returned her stare intensely, as if realizing something. “You…”

“Yes?” She blinked, not quite understanding.

He sighed in irritation. “Come on, I’ll drive you home. And hurry up. I won’t wait for you.” Without waiting for her response, he turned suddenly and walked off, leaving her gaping for a few moments as she processed what he said.

_ H-Hijikata-sensei is going to take me home?! Is that even allowed?!  _

She caught up to him after a few paces. They were headed to the back of the school. _Towards what?_ “Um...Hijikata-sensei...I don’t think…”

“Shut up and start moving,” he said gruffly but without malice, not bothering to turn around and look at her. She could hear her tiny footsteps increase in speed to keep up with his stride. He shook his head. This is probably a bad idea, but…

“Like hell I’m going to leave you alone in this school just waiting around.” He grunted. This school was like a den of wolves after all. Leaving her little room to argue she sighed in resignation, and followed behind him towards the back of the school.

\---------

Chizuru had never made an explicit habit of picturing what the inside of her teacher’s car looked like, but if she had to guess, it looked exactly like she would describe it did as she sat in the passenger seat. It was clean, the leather seats were dark; it smelled new, and it was warm. And even though she was entirely suffocated by the smell of his cologne, the ashtray was filled with the butts of old cigarettes. Her fingers danced across the edge of her skirt skittishly. The only noise was the sound of the windshield wipers and the occasional swear word by Hijikata in the face of early afternoon traffic. They had only made it a few blocks from the school before being placed in almost a standstill.

She nervously glanced up at him, eyes focused on his strong jawline instead of his full profile. “Um, Hijikata-san, it’s not necessary to take me all the way home, you can just drop me off when the traffic lessens. I still had a few errands to do before reaching home anyway,” she paused, licking her lips nervously when she saw the jaw clench.

“Errands?” He echoed humorlessly, “It’s rather late to be meeting up with friends, Yukimura. Or is this a meeting of a different sort?” The end of the question trailed off  brusquely.

If Chizuru was bolder, she might have teased him back in response, but something about the question itself had made her only fluster in response, her eyes watching Hijikata’s free hand fumble with the carton of cigarettes in the ashtray, not taking his eyes off the road. The blush on Chizuru’s face seemed to satisfy him, so he didn’t press the issue. With a gentle huff, she leaned forward and did the task for him, pulling out a slim cigarette and then, hesitatingly--almost daringly, poised it up against his lips, asking for invitation.

He shot her a glance. Perplexed, or intrigued almost. She might not win an argument against him with words, but at least she could tease him back somehow. His lips parted gently so she slipped the filter end inside, and then placed her hands back in her lap obediently as he managed to find and light the cigarette himself easily. His eyes averted her gaze afterwards and they shared a pregnant pause of silence, Chizuru feeling giddy despite herself.

_ He almost looked...embarrassed. _ She rolled the top of the passenger window down.

Hijikata frowned. “Does it--”

“N-No, it’s just…my dad always warned about--”

“Right. Well, it's not wrong. He is a doctor, after all.”

They inched forward in the traffic for the next few minutes in silence. Chizuru bit her lip. She wanted to say something to break the silence, but  _ what? _ It was the first time she realized that she didn’t really know much about her teacher to strike casual conversation, despite seeing him often in the halls and occasionally thinking about…

She shook her head, clearing her thoughts. “R-Really, Hijikata-san, you can just---”

His voice turned rough again. “It’s impolite to just drop off a lady in the middle of town. Besides, it’s raining Yukimura. Even you can take a day off reasonably, right?”

The question brought a dry smile to her face.  _ Says the oni sensei! _

He blew a puff of smoke directed at his opened window as if reading her thoughts. “Yeah, yeah I get it. But even I know when to stop sometimes.”

“Do you?” She was feeling bolder now, chiding him lightly, “You always seem so busy with your work regarding the school and the dojo--”

“Kondou-san prides this school,” he cut her off, straightening up in his seat slightly. “It’s the least I can do to see his goal of the school achieved in this lifetime.” He flicked the ashes of the unnoticed cigarette in the ashtray. Chizuru tilted her head towards the open air from her window. Small drops of rain were starting to trickle in and dot her skin. 

As if recognizing the awkward silence about to follow, Hijikata abruptly changed the subject. “What errand is so important anyway? You never answered my original question.”

She sighed in relief for the switch, and explained her situation regarding her class’s upcoming festival booth slowly. As understanding dawned on him, Hijikata nodded slightly at her words but spoke with caution. 

“That’s a lot of work to put on one girl. Be careful not to overwork yourself.”

She shrugged non-committedly and smiled. “I don’t mind it. I’m very grateful for my opportunity to attend this school, so I want to do everything I can to contribute somehow.”

The corners of Hijikata’s mouth turned downwards at her response, Chizuru noticed. She began to fret. Had she spoken wrong?

“You can be more honest with me than that kid,” he muttered under his breath. She only blinked in response, confused.   


This time, he spared the road to glance at her fully, violet eyes meeting brown earnestly. She blushed. It had to be hard for  _ anyone _ to last under an intense stare like Hijikata’s.

It was too captivating. She wriggled in her seat, feeling suddenly constrained. Hijikata blew one last breath of cigarette smoke through the window and ashed the dry cigarette, the smell of cinders and menthol filling Chizuru’s senses, triggering an involuntary shiver up her spine. And his cologne. Always his cologne. It was different from Harada-sensei’s, which was milder and easy to inhale. Hijikata’s smell was smokey and intoxicating, like too much will leave you breathless.

That’s how she felt now; breathless. She shook her head again, trying to ignore the blush creeping up her neck. Her eyes looked ahead through the misty windshield, finding her voice. “If you take this street down a few blocks, you’ll be in my neighborhood.”

“I told you before, didn’t I? It’s improper to take a lady only halfway. Besides, you’re weak. We’re responsible for the well-being of all our students,” he finally sounded like a teacher this time, but it lacked animosity to it again, and she giggled. The sound must have unnerved him she figured, by the slight widening of his eyes. Then he smirked, focusing on the road ahead and a silence fell again.

He was old-fashioned that way. But, she didn’t dislike that about him either.

This time, the stretch of road and cars and rainfall filled the silence with no hurry, and she leaned back comfortably into the leather chair, willing herself not to close her eyes too long. One day off wouldn’t be too bad. Tomorrow she’d start right up again, and finish the costume on time. She wouldn’t waste the opportunity. With renewed focus, she let her eyes drift off into her own thoughts, and missed the soft look thrown her way. 

A muted exhale escaped her lips. It was too comfortable here. If only her neighborhood wasn’t already in view.

\------------

The next morning, Chizuru felt refreshed. She had woken up early in the morning and managed to coax Heisuke out of the house on time enough to arrive with only a few seconds left for the late morning bell, according to her brother Kaoru. But when she walked into her homeroom class, all the eyes pressed upon her felt unnerving. She paused in the doorway, and started to retreat backwards before she bumped into a hard surface behind her.

“Seems you have quite a fan-base already, Chizuru-chan,” the low voice whispered into her ear, and she jumped involuntarily, swiveling around to face Souji in surprise. 

“What’s going on?” Her voice heightened anxiously, but Souji only chuckled.

Souji hummed playfully and pointed towards her desk. “They’ve been talking about the gift on your desk all morning. So, who’s it from Chizuru-chan? You’ve been romancing someone other than me?” He put a hand to his heart woundedly. She failed to hide her amused giggle, but was glad to have someone close behind her as she walked towards her desk. Indeed---there was a gift sitting on her desk--simply wrapped in a colored bag without a bow, and no note to identify the sender. She frowned and dipped a hand inside, revealing a wide black box.

Peering into the solid black box, beginning to reveal the box with trepid fingers, she raised an eyebrow. Souji leaned over her shoulder. “I don’t know who--”

Her breath hitched. Inside the bag, there was a small sewing kit, tape measures, and shiny ivory needles. All the things she needed to finish adjusting her maid costume! She blushed in embarrassment, mind racing. 

_ Hijikata-san?  _ She had never told him explicitly what she planned on buying at the market.  _ So how did he know? _

An appreciative whistle escaped Souji’s throat right in her ear, startling her and she remembered they still had a bit of an audience around them. “I guess I can’t let my guard down for even a day it seems.”

She glanced at him curiously for the comment but then re-focused her attention on the contents of the gift bag, immediately thinking of ways to acknowledge and thank Hijikata for his thoughtfulness. Then, Harada-sensei entered the room and the curious eyes began to disperse as everyone searched for their seats, and Souji gave her a farewell pat on the shoulder as he left to return to his own class. She sat down in her seat, hiding the bag between her legs from Harada-sensei’s view. It would be her secret for now.

And she would make sure to thank him later.

\---

Thank you for reading! This story has no BETA, so any reviews for support or correction are gratefully appreciated! Thank you again!!!


	6. I Need A Ticket!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chizuru’s life has been turned upside down ever since she took Heisuke’s advice and applied to his formerly all-boys school as the only girl there. But, even with this crazy bunch, she’s happy to spend everyday with them exploring something new. And with one in particular, maybe something a little more…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was actually really, really hard to come up with because while I enjoy Kazama as a character and really enjoyed his route, I just idk...he feels harder to keep in character than the others? So I really had to be considerate and think about him and try to make it OC yet romantic without it being forced...I really hope this didn’t come out as forced T-T

“Oh no, I’m going to be late if I don’t hurry! I hope they aren’t all waiting for me..” Chizuru moaned, her school bag slapping against her thigh as she bolted down the stairs taking two steps at a time. 

She had spent so much time chatting with Heisuke and Okita at the dojo after school ended that she nearly forgot her homeroom class was having a meeting starting in less than three minutes. She was quick on her feet to try and cross half across the campus just to get there on time, but as she cut the corner to her classroom’s hallway and bounded right into someone’s hard chest, leaving him grunting from the collision and knocking her flat on her back with a gasp and stars in her eyes.

“Y-Yukimura?! Are you OK? You-oh...” A familiar tenor hit her ears immediately and she nodded with a wince, forcing her clenched eyes to flutter open as Saito stood her over with concern etched over his usually stoic features. And then he blushed.

Chizuru rubbed at her backside gently and let out a nervous sigh. “Yeah, I’m fine-ahh!” She sat up quickly and crossed her legs, noticing Saito’s eyes dipping gaze and that her legs were pushed slightly apart from the impact. A painful silence erupted as the two reddened immediately, even as Chizuru accepted the silent hand given to help her regain her footing.

Saito’s eyes were still fixed to the ground when she did spare him a glance, so she murmured an apology. This made him perk up in response as his eyes flitted to hers cautiously.

“Students are not allowed to run in the hallways,” he said quietly with pink cheeks, “...you could’ve gotten hurt.”

Chizuru flustered, mouth opening to explain the reason for her rush when she flinched suddenly, remembering her mission. 

“Ah-that’s right, I’m late! Sorry Saito-senpai, I have to go!” She said, taking off down the hall again as he called out to her back. She nearly tumbled right into the door as her anxious fingers pulled back the shogi-style door. 

Harada was the one to look up first. “Good, Yukimura, you’re here. We can start now.”

“Finally!” Her classmate Ibuki cried. “Let’s hurry so I can go home already - I’m starving!” Harada smacked him over the head with the rolled papers in his hand affectionately, as Chizuru blushed in embarrassment and found an empty seat among the makeshift meeting table of desks. Harada flashed her a warm smile in response, making her belly flip.

Then the meeting began.

\-------------

It took a lot longer than Chizuru initially expected but it wasn’t that she minded. The meeting was actually pretty entertaining to watch with Ibuki and Harada’s camaraderie bleeding into the conversation. She smiled softly to herself at the thought, walking slowly this time back down the hallway. The festival was quickly approaching and she wanted to get home as quickly as possible so that she could start working on her final touches for the costume. The meeting renewed her vigor to work hard, with so many people counting on her to bring in the patrons. 

She turned the corner to descend the steps and for the second time today she nearly collided with another person, except this time strong arms wrapped around her shoulders to steady her from knocking straight into him.

“Hey, are you spaced out or something?” The hands around her tightened, and she blinked as she looked up. The wolfish grin that greeted her made her smile back shyly as she untangled herself. 

“Hi, Shiranui-senpai. Amagiri-senpai.” The aforementioned redhead nodded back to her silently in return as Shiranui groaned and rolled his neck.

“I keep telling you, Kyo is fine. I’m not as stuffy as this guy,” he said, jerking a thumb towards his companion. “And actually, we were just coming from---”

“Shiranui.” The deep voice cut into the conversation sharply, and the voice involuntarily gave Chizuru immediate goosebumps on her arm. She wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not; running into Chikage Kazama always gave her strange, inexplicable feelings. But as he descended down the steps in regal fashion, she could only offer a tiny smile in greeting. 

His eyes lit up dangerously as he approached. “Hello, my future wife.” 

Kazama attempted to reach out for her hand--likely to kiss it--but Chizuru flinched and recoiled back just as fast, much to Shiranui’s amusement if the snorting sound from the raven were any indication.

Kazama frowned for a moment and then schooled his expression back into his usual smugness. “It’s late and you’re still in the school, unattended too I see. I’m curious to know why...were you waiting for me?”

Chizuru’s eyes widened a fraction at the wild assumption as Shiranui just groaned and stepped back from them, seemingly affronted for her sake. It was that gesture and the sympathetic look Amagiri sent her that finally made her shoulders relax, so she indulged him with a polite shake of her head.

“I’m...um, our class had a meeting about the festival.” She spoke slowly, trying to avoid giving anything away in the wavering of her voice. He took another step closer and the smell of his cologne was starting to envelop her. It was rich and dark, just like his personality. 

Kazama’s eyebrows wrinkled. “Is that so? What does your class have planned for this year then that requires so much collaboration?”

“A maid cafe,” Chizuru answered without thinking, before realizing her mistake as Kazama’s unguarded expressions of pure shock and then anger crossed his features. 

“I-It’s nothing too in depth, however…” She trailed off, fidgeting in place.

Kazama grit his teeth with eyes narrowed. “I can’t allow my future wife to participate in something so puerile. Those places are for the lowest of society who take pleasure in the views of---wait. Are they having you dress up as well?”

Chizuru felt her shoulders curl inwardly as if his words were striking her with the heat of Kazama’s glare. She refused to meet his eye though, taking a short step back and playing with the hem of her skirt.

She rushed to change the subject. “Kazama-san, you’re also here in the school pretty late. Is the student council doing something special this year for the festival?” 

She gave a gentle smile, hoping to distract him from his earlier question and from the way his frown lessened she assumed it was effective. If there was one thing Kazama Chikage liked to do, it was talk about himself.

This time was no exception. His shoulders squared immediately. “Of course, the student council will be contributing to the entertainment this year as well. We will be holding a traditional tea ceremony viewing.” He said, eyes darting to the side as his friends who stood patiently. Amagiri met his eyes and he nodded solemnly towards the two.

This made Chizuru perk up, and the nervous clothes pulling stopped immediately. “A tea ceremony?” She echoed.

He nodded again. “Yes, my family is well-known for this, and so we decided to have a performance for the student body to experience some cultural aspects of the festival. Of course, you will be attending.”

“That sounds really impressive, Kazama-san! I--huh!?” Chizuru blinked, replaying his words and then blushing immediately. He was so forward!

Kazama looked at her expectantly, as if she had no reason to feel caught off guard at all. “When we marry, it will be expected of you to also learn our families traditions. That would include how to perform a perfect tea ceremony, so it makes sense to have you become familiar with it right away. If it’s your husband’s will there shouldn’t be any problem then, right?”

Chizuru felt the brush creeping up her neck at the repetitive mentions of marriage and wifely duties, but more specifically the way Kazama’s gleaming red eyes bore into her with raw honesty, as if he truly only had confidence and possession running through his veins when he looked at her. It was unnerving and thrilling at the same time, and the conflicting feelings in her stomach only made her legs tremble. As if sensing the inevitable turn of the conversation Amagiri and Shiranui quickly came to Kazama’s side, a hand on each shoulder.

“What he’s trying to say,” Shiranui said with a thin smile, “is that he would like you to come and see him perform. If you're free to come, that is.”

Amagiri nodded. “We will be holding a full dress rehearsal tomorrow afternoon, if your studies allow it I’m sure Chikage would appreciate your attendance. We can provide you with reserved seating.”

“You two,” Kazam growled, “I am perfectly capable of explaining to my future wife the details--”

“See? You’re gonna scare her off again with all that talk.” Shiranui said with a sigh. “She looks like she’s gonna run away any minute!”

Amagiri chimed in as well. “It would be best not to make assumptions about Yukimura-kun’s schedule, Kazama-san. She may have prior obligations that---”

“Um. I’ll go.”

Chizuru’s voice sounded strong, if not a little high-pitched, and it stunned the three boys right into silence. It stunned Chizuru too; she just said what came to her mind suddenly, but she had to admit, she was curious to see him on stage like that. She had never seen a live tea ceremony before, but she imagined it would be as elegant and refined as someone like Kazama’s family history described.

Kazama recovered from the shock first, shrugging off his friends and smirking widely. “Well. It’s only natural that you’d want to see your future husband. Don’t worry, you won’t be disappointed. I’ll leave your name with the other student council members. It’s tomorrow at 6.”

He closed the gap between them smoothly, hooking a finger under her chin confidently. Chizuru tried to glare but it lacked the heat it should’ve--especially under red eyes like that. Her breath hitched in her throat, like he was sucking the air out of her through his gaze.

“And I won’t tolerate tardiness, my future wife.” His fingers slipped away and if it hadn’t been for Shiranui’s umpteenth eye roll and Amagiri’s sad shake of his head, Chizuru probably would’ve lost all strength in her knees and dropped to the floor. Instead, she managed a polite bow and then pressed a hand to her heart. It was beating wildly. Her eyes lowered in thought. How unexpected.

\----

“There’s no way you’re actually going to that thing, right?” Heisuke's question came out slurred as he chewed on the rice ball he swiped from Okita’s bento. The latter only glared and gave the younger boy a shove onto his back, enjoying the way Heisuke started to sputter and cough when the food slipped down the wrong pipe as a result.

They chose to have lunch together on the roof grounds again, missing Saito who once again had club activities to attend to with Kaoru and declined her offer, but it didn’t upset Chizuru. She’d continue to offer until one day they could all enjoy the sunshine outside together.

Speaking of, it was especially sunny today with a faint breeze every now and again and it blew through Chizuru’s loose ponytail, hot and sticky. Perfect weather to juxtapose the anxious storm rolling in her belly. Chizuru sighed softly and handed Heisuke her water bottle, who accepted it eagerly and took three long gulps.

Okita propped a hand under his head and relaxed into a lean, closing his eyes lazily. “He’s right, you know. That guy is annoying. Why would you want to be alone with him and his circle?” One emerald eye opened slightly to look at her.

Chizuru hesitated to reply and instead reached with her chopsticks for a cherry tomato to chew, still not having a proper answer for why she accepted the invitation so readily. If she answered honestly---that she felt suddenly subdued by those eyes, and yet heard the challenge in his voice too honest to resist…she couldn’t admit she had fallen for the trap probably as easily as he expected her too. 

“...I think I was just curious,” she said decidedly and with a sweet laugh at the end, hoping to disarm the caution she saw in his eyes. “Kazama-san said it was a family tradition. He seemed...very proud of it.”

The sound of her laugh made Okita’s lips curl as he moved instead to lay on his back, arms tucked behind his head. A cloudless sky, just endless blue. Chizuru looked up too, and together they sat in silence---until Heisuke stopped choking long enough to burst into another animated tirade of all the things Kazama was likely to do after the show, much to Okita’s chagrin and Chizuru’s amusement.

\----

Once the final bell rang and the class gave their bow and began to disperse, Chizuru was willing to admit the thrumming of her veins was coming from anxiousness. It was silly; she had no reason to be this nervous as though she was the one going on stage instead of her senior. She packed her things away slowly, and for a moment considered backing out of her original agreement. That is, until Shiranui appeared in the doorway, a feral smile on his lips. 

“You ready?” He propped an arm up against the door casually and wet his lips. As usual, his button-up shirt was loose and hanging wildly, the shirt underneath scrawled in ink the name of some band Chizuru didn’t recognize. Adorned with silver earrings, cuffs, and leather bracelets only made his presence all the more dangerous and alluring. He made the unkempt look fashionable somehow. 

Chizuru caught herself staring and flushed with a nod, pulling the zipper on her bag and hoisting it over her shoulder as she approached him with a murmured greeting that he didn’t return. He turned and headed down the hallway immediately. Shiranui walked fast for her liking, but she adjusted her pace quickly enough to put a respectable distance behind him as she followed, watching his ponytail sway gently from the movement. For a moment neither of them spoke. 

Then, as they reached the corridor hall to the auditorium he threw her a glance over his shoulder. “You know you don’t...have to do this, right? I’m sure if you just said you had a stomach ache or something, he’d let you off the hook.”

When she didn’t respond right away, he continued. “Kazama can be a little forceful at times...I don’t want you to feel pressured because he doesn’t know when to quit. I don’t care what he’d have to say about it anyway, so if you want me to cover for you I won’t mind.”

“I’m fine. I--I want to go, actually.”

She smiled at his back, feeling the words soothe the tension in her muscles. She didn’t get to see this side of Shiranui often, but he could be surprisingly gentle. Perhaps Amagiri was the same way when the three of them were together.

“Are you also going to watch, Shiranui-san?”

He chuckled humorlessly. “No.”

As they approached the auditorium doors, Chizuru could hear the humming of patrons on the other side of it, only a few more minutes before the presentation started. He looked down at her as she approached his side, locking eyes.

“Oh? You should do that more often, Yukimura.” He noted with a matching wolfish grin.

“Do what?” She questioned as he pushed open the doors for her.

“Smile like that. It’s cute--he’d like it.”

She hoped he didn’t notice the blush on her face as she stepped through inside.

\---------

It wasn’t entirely dark yet but the lights were dimmed. There also wasn’t a large group of people, mostly members of the student council and some teachers. As Chizuru took a hesitating step down the sloping carpeted aisle, she shivered as the direct blow of the air conditioning down on her, riling up her anxiety once again. She took in a deep breath.

“Are...you Yukimura-san?” She jumped at the voice behind her, spinning suddenly. She stood face to face with a taller, slim boy with thick auburn hair pulled into a ponytail with bangs that brushed his jawline and inky grey eyes. Her eyes must have lingered too long on his face because he suddenly blushed and offered a shy smile, scratching at his face absently. Chizuru’s eyes dropped to the floor in embarrassment and she nodded.

“Kazama-san has a seat waiting for you, this way.” He gently brushed against her arm to lead her towards the front of the auditorium, and Chizuru realized to her horror that she was in the front row. Sputtering wildly, she jumped behind the boy and clutched his shirt.

“I can’t sit that close! Are you sure that’s---”

The boy’s soft laughter broke her panicked thoughts for a moment. “Yeah, it is actually. He insisted on it. But don’t worry, once the lights do down you won’t be able to see anything but the stage, I promise.” He took her hand and gently pried it off his uniform, clutching it as they walked down the slope to her seat. Just as he said, the red velvet theater seating chair had the words printed ‘Yukimura Chizuru’ on a bright white sheet taped to the front. If possible, she blushed even harder and burrowed in on herself. 

His hand started to pull away. “Are you nervous, Yukimura-san? I’m sure the show will go well. We all put a great deal of effort into making this as realistic as possible so you should just relax and enjoy yourself.” He offered her a pretty smile, full of bright white teeth.

She gave a small one in return, and then paused with her eyes widening. “Wait, ‘we’? So that means you are also--?”

“Oi, Souma! They’re calling you about the stage lights and--what, Yukimura? What are you doing here?” Her eyes tore away from her companion’s face, an instinctual reaction whenever she heard that deep and irritated baritone.

All the air left Chizuru’s lungs immediately. “H-HIjikata-sensei?! What are you doing here?” She squeaked, feeling the rush of embarrassment threaten to buckle her knees right then and there. The dark haired man always seemed to have that effect on her no matter how many times they ran into each other in the school.

He half-rolled his eyes at her like she said something stupid. “I just asked you that, kid. And why wouldn’t I be? It’s my job to review all the performances for the festival beforehand if Kondou-san is busy.” 

Then his eyes narrowed. “I’ll ask again--why are you here?” His eyes flickered up to her companion in a glare, even as the boy put his hands up in defense. She didn’t answer right away, her thoughts given away by the dim light shone off his midnight black hair and made his eyes sparkle like sugilite. It truly wasn’t fair sometimes.

“Seems like Kazama-san just invited her for the viewing, Hijikata-sensei. I was showing her to her seat.” The boy---Souma-kun---said politely. She glanced between the two of them, afraid to speak in the suddenly tense atmosphere.

The threat in his eyes didn’t diminish even as he closed his eyes to process the information with arms crossed over his chest. 

“I wasn’t asking you, Souma.” Hijikata spoke slowly. 

Then he looked to Chizuru again, giving her a hard once-over that peppered goosebumps all over her arms before giving a long sigh.

“Well. I guess there’s no problem then. If you have any trouble, I’m sitting with the other teachers there,” Hijikata jerked a thumb to the second floor southernmost box. “...if you need anything.” His voice lingered on the last word, communicating subtly to Chizuru that he didn’t necessarily approve; but she didn’t mind it. The thought of having him nearby was actually more relieving to her anxiety than she could comprehend at that moment.

He narrowed his eyes again and Chizuru swallowed thickly, feeling her sense of reason cut off by the intensity of his eyes. 

She glanced at Souma-kun who nodded and bowed politely, so she followed suit, staying down until she heard his heavy footsteps depart, shiny black shoes just in her peripheral. When she looked back up, Souma was smiling jokingly down at her, offering his arm.

“Shall we?”

She nodded softly and grasped it as it led her to her seat. Souma nodded again at her and took a seat a row behind her. The lights went dark not a minute after, and the performance began.

\----

By the end, Chizuru could only describe her momentary lack of brain function as astonishment. The tea ceremony was...enchanting. She sat enraptured from the very beginning, but even more so when after several introductions of participants, Kazama Chikage, the host, dressed so elegantly in white that seemed to even pale in comparison to his pallid complexion completely soaked in the spotlight as if it was born for him. He looked utterly terrifying from the range of closeness she sat, and yet she was only more enthralled from the sight of it. The other participants frightened her too, but in a different way. She recognized them as his family members from the same slope of the nose. And the eyes of course. Always the red eyes no matter the gender.

Chizuru shivered from the thought of so many of those wild eyes staring at her if she ever formally met them but then quickly shook her head to get rid of it. It was a strange thought to have, with Kazama and all his talk about marriage was stickier than she had anticipated. But while watching him perform to that gentle koto playing was impossible not to picture the ‘what-ifs’ of such a future. Towards the end as Kazama offered the matcha to his guests in the final role she could have sworn their eyes met for a brief moment, and something of a smile actually crossed his lips as red eyes danced in the light.

It was breathtaking. 

And so abrupt was the end that when the lights cut back on and her wrist-watch flashed 5:45pm back in her unfocused eyes, she was still stuck to her seat even as others buzzed around her. If the performance on the actual day was going to be anything like it was tonight, she was sure the Student Council would win for their contribution hands-down. She didn’t want to think too negatively just yet though, the costumes palette colors were already inspiring slight changes in her own cafe designs.

Souma was the one to collect her first, with a gentle demeanor even as he repeated back an order from the student council president himself to meet with them back at their club room to celebrate a successful rehearsal. The information made Chizuru blush all the way down to her throat, but she couldn’t dare refuse someone asking as sweetly as Souma.

Besides, he’d probably get in trouble if she didn’t attend. 

So she followed out of the auditorium behind Souma while trying to catch Hijikata’s eyes among the faculty. She was unsuccessful, a slender brunette student-teacher blocking her line of sight as she couldn't crowd into Hijikata’s space any further. She decided not to dwell on it too long before her thoughts betrayed her. Beside her, Souma chatted with her silently about her reaction to the performance, and impressed Chizuru with how knowledgeable he was with traditional tea ceremonies as well. 

The thought made her feel suddenly small, outside of a world like that.

When they entered the clubroom, there were already small decorations hanging and the meeting table littered with snacks, fruit teas, and a small stack of cookies as appetizers. She bowed politely and introduced herself formally to the group, and then sighing in relief when Shiranui and Amagiri caught her eye and the former waved her over. She glanced at Souma who nodded in understanding, and then wandered over to his own group of friends leaving her free to join them.

“Yo,” he grinned. “What did you think? Kazama can be pretty graceful when he tries to be, huh?”

She nodded, reflecting his smile despite herself.

“The sets and costumes were lovely as well. It’s nice to see everyone celebrating after working so hard to put this together. Do you think Hijikata-sensei will give his final approval?” She asked.

Shiranui shrugged as if the results didn’t bother him either way. A small silence settled between the three of them and Chizuru began playing with the hem of her skirt again before Amagiri stood from his chair, gesturing Chizuru to his seat with his hands. 

“I will go and fetch drinks. Please.”

“How chivalrous of you,” Shiranui drawled with a snicker as Amagiri let out a long-suffering sigh while turning his back. Chizuru eyed him in silent reprimanding but she said nothing and the two settled into a comfortable silence while chatter buzzed around them. 

Shiranui threw her an amused look but she couldn’t form any words. Her thoughts were still lingering to the way the stage light highlighted Kazama’s buttery blond locks and the way his red eyes displayed such a reverence that never once betrayed his face.

An amused low voice interrupted her thoughts. “I can only assume my performance was so moving it completely left you stumped with a face like this. It’s only natural to react this way...and I don’t dislike this expression of yours either.” His lips turned upwards in a smirk. 

Speak of the devil.

She hid a smile as she turned towards the sound and found strength in her legs to stand, eyes still glassy from the show lights. The adrenaline of standing in front of the person she was just pondering moments ago fueled her rushed words of gratitude.

“It was really lovely, Kazama-san! I had no idea you were so skilled at cultural things like this so, thank you again for inviting me! I’m very...” She trailed off and bowed again, unsure of where to place her eyes the minute she saw them flash with something behind them.

“...very grateful.” Her honey eyes blinked, the word not quite sounding as fitting out loud as it did in her head.

Thin lips twitched downward in response. “I didn’t invite you just to receive reverence or thanks. I went above to make sure to perform flawlessly. Perhaps it was still not to your liking.” His features soon melted into an annoyed frown until Chizuru shook her head.

“Not at all! I liked it.” She pressed. “I really liked it.”

She only dared to meet his eyes for a moment after that tiny confession but his expression did not change.

“I see. What did you think of me?” He asked with a voice lower than usual, and this time she did look up at him in confusion. She hadn’t expected him to say something both blunt and honest at the same time. It was unlike him enough to have Shiranui gaping from his chair. It wasn’t what she was expecting him to say but it sounded almost like he wanted...a compliment? Praise? She had never seen Kazama ask for anything before.

Chizuru softened her gaze at the realization. It was easier to please him than she originally anticipated. “I think you were very mesmerizing to watch, Kazama-san.” The word came out like spun sugar, softened by the look in her eyes and the blush prickling her cheeks. 

She could only hope the sincerity in her voice had reached him since she hadn’t yet learned how to read the looks behind his eyes. His lips tightened, then curled upward--satisfied. Whatever could have been there next was gone in an instant though as Amagiri returned back to the group in silent fashion.

Shiranui coughed into his hand awkwardly. “Great timing. Can we talk about something else now? I’m seconds from puking all over this floor.”

Chizuru grinned as Kazama glared angrily and Amagiri blinked in confusion. She could agree; it was probably enough for now, or else her own head might explode next. 

Besides, maybe in the future she’d get to see the Kazama family perform again in other circumstances.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading, leave a comment and let me know your thoughts!


	7. I Need A Suggestion!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chizuru’s life has been turned upside down ever since she took Heisuke’s advice and applied to his formerly all-boys school as the only girl there. But, even with this crazy bunch, she’s happy to spend everyday with them exploring something new. And with one in particular, maybe something a little more…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Came to me in a dream *sigh*...I wish I was Chizuru, haha. Almost at the end! I don't know which ending to pick because I love all the husbandos so the first person to comment and pick a guy for me, I'll write the final chapter with that pairing in mind haha.

.......

It rained all through the weekend, and left the streets outside her home wet, dark, and gray. It gave her a good excuse to get out of a Saturday shopping excursion with Sen and Kosuzu-chan. And since Heisuke didn’t come to visit her either, she had no excuse not to work on the final pieces of her costume. The festival was next weekend after all.

After six hours of patient work, it was finally complete. Nimble fingers tenderly touched the lace edges of the maid uniform adorning the lady mannequin. It looked convincing enough, she thought. The pinafore was bleached white with frills on the edges and the petticoat was styled in typical French fashion; cinched in the waist and cropped at the top. She spared herself the embarrassment of a V-cut shape and opted for a frilly collar to shield her collarbone and exposed skin. The bow on her backside was simple but prominent enough, and she had made sure to buy the right size stockings so that it covered her thighs and didn’t violate Hijikata’s or the student council’s dress policy. 

Nodding, she took a step back and looked at the uniform objectively, then blushed furiously. 

_ Can I really do this…? _

The vibrating buzz of her phone shook her from her thoughts, and she turned her attention to her cellphone atop of her bed. She read the message sender quickly and flipped her phone open.  _ Okita-senpai…?  _ She glanced at her clock. It was already 7pm, and the sun had already gone down. Maybe he needed something?

_ Chizuru-chan~ I’m bored, entertain me! _

She sighed fondly, and plopped down on the edge of her bed typing quickly. 

_ Sorry, Okita-senpai! I’m not doing anything particularly interesting to report... _

The reply came back before she had time to put her cell down. 

_It’s_ _Souji, remember? S-O-U-J-I._

She squirmed after reading it over before laughing to herself, staring at the simple kanji fondly. 

_ Souji-senpai, sorry.  _

_ Good girl. _

The next message made her giggle despite herself, imagining the irony in his voice as if they were speaking in person. 

_ Um, thank you... _

She wondered if he could hear the embarrassment through her message and glanced around her room self-consciously, half-worried that if she was too noisy Kaoru might burst in again. He’d never let her get away with texting a boy at this hour. Steeling herself, she prepared to send a farewell to cut things short before another reply made her phone vibrate again.

_ Did you finish your maid uniform yet? _

She raised an eyebrow in the silence, confused by the question and the change in subject. Chizuru remembered mentioning her intentions this evening while they had lunch together with Heisuke on the rooftop, but she didn’t think he was listening enough to remember it. The thought that he had been was endearing to her.

Chizuru typed back. 

_ Yes. _

_ Hmm~? Send me a picture. =3= _

Chizuru’s free hand rose to her face in shock and a blush spread across her face as she looked at the maid uniform hanging on the mannequin warily. She shook her head to herself in the negative, banishing the thought. 

That would be too embarrassing! 

She fell back onto her bed with a gentle  _ plop  _ and fanned her face. He was just teasing her...he had to be….

Raising the phone above her head, she typed back quickly and winced as soon as she sent it. By admitting it, she knew she was already at his mercy. __

_ No teasing, Souji-senpai. _

As if encouraged, he began firing back replies rapidly.

_ What, are you nervous? You’ll be wearing it in public pretty soon you know.  _

_ I promise I won’t laugh, heh  _

_ Have you even tried it on yet? _

She bit her lip at the last one. She  _ hadn’t  _ tried it on yet, and while she was worried that something might be wrong with it, the idea of wearing it just to pose for Souji-senpai seemed like too much, even if she--might have--wanted to. 

As if he was reading her thoughts, he followed up his message with another.

_ I’ll give you my honest opinion. No jokes. _

The sincerity made her pause. She typed her next response slowly. 

_...Promise? _

_ Of course, Chizuru-chan. _

Chizuru glanced at the clock again. She was getting ready to bathe and then call it a night, but it wouldn’t take long to just try the outfit on and let him give his thoughts. The last thing she wanted was to have something go wrong with the outfit on the day of the festival, but she couldn’t convince herself to wear it for fun...even in her own home. Until now, that is. It was a perfect excuse, really. Her throat swallowed thickly, and her phone vibrated, breaking her own silence.

_ Well? _

She rolled her eyes at his impatience. Chizuru glanced down herself, wearing her dark leggings and a long sleeved pink sweater. She blushed again. At least he wasn’t around to watch her change in person. Hoisting herself off the bed, she shed her clothes quickly and buttoned herself into the costume. Right away, she noticed a small snag right around the nape of her neck that she would have to scissor out of the way, and thanked Souji in her head for the suggestion. After a moment’s hesitation, she also pinned her dark, thick hair up into two pigtails to see the complete image for herself. In her room mirror, she gave herself a spin around. For a first-time attempt, it looked very convincing. She smiled to herself.

However, when she picked up her cell phone and turned on her camera, her knees began to shake slightly. It had included everything she could think of that would look convincing enough; white frills for the apron billowed distinctively, and it covered everything without leaving  _ too  _ much to the imagination. With an arm raised, she gave a nervous smile and took the photo quickly. It was visible enough; so she hit send, and then exhaled nervously as she waited in the silence.

After a moment, nothing. The anticipation made her heart quicken. Five minutes had passed with just her staring. Perhaps he was disappointed? Dejectedly, she set her cell back down on the bed and moved her hands behind her back to begin untying her sake when this time her phone rang with her signature ringtone this time, insteading of vibrating from a message alert. Frowning, she left the tie half un-done as she picked up her phone and then gasped in surprise at the caller ID. 

It wasn’t Okita like she had assumed--it was Saito! At this hour?!

She was still reeling when she answered the phone. He has  _ never  _ called her before, in the months since she had offered him her number. 

She swallowed nervously. “H-Hello?”

_ “Yukimura?” _ his voice was deep and strained, and she shivered pleasantly as it echoed in her ear. 

“Yes?”

_ “Well, I--yes. I was calling because--I just needed to ensure---” _ he paused for a moment and she could hear chortling in the background, something fleshy hitting a hard surface, and then a loud whine. Her eyes widened suspiciously. That kinda sounded just like...no, no way. He initially said he was bored, after all. 

“S-Saito-senpai?” She glanced at the clock again, still not believing he could even be calling her in the first place.

There was another pause and some angry whispering before the voice on the other line came back.  _ “Um--well. As I was saying, I wanted to ensure that...you are alone, correct?” _

She blushed, not even bothering to hide the surprise and indignation in her tone. “...Huh?”

This time she could hear the embarrassment in her senpai’s voice.  _ “I mean--I apologize, I didn’t mean to confuse you. Souji had said---I just wanted to know due to your state of dress that...that you were home and safe and at least.” _

“But how could you...? Oh, did Souji send you--?” Her thoughts were catching up to her slowly. Her mouth snapped shut in embarrassment. Admitting it out loud seemed worse, somehow. But just then her phone pulsated and she pulled it away from her ear to open the incoming message and read it briefly, blushing. It was from Okita.

_ He’s  _ trying _ to say he likes it.  _ <3

Chizuru gasped. That confirmed it; no doubt that  _ was  _ Souji’s voice she was hearing in the background. That meant that they were together. And even worse, Saito  _ saw  _ the picture too! Only vaguely did she notice that Saito had begun rambling apologies again and she pressed the phone back to ear gingerly. She was struggling to follow as he tried to explain his suggestion of making the hem of the dress longer to cover her knees to ensure they followed all aspects of the dressing policy when her phone began to buzz again; but when she retracted her arm to check, it wasn’t another text message. It was a phone call.

_ Heisuke?!  _

She cut Saito off abruptly. “I-I’m sorry Saito-senpai, I have another call on my other line, so---”

_ “A-Ah, I understand--before you go then, I just wanted to say--that is, the costume---” _

Her phone was still vibrating in her hand impatiently. “Uh, yes?”

_ “I-It suits you.”  _

As she opened her mouth in shock, she heard the line click in her ear. His words repeated themselves in her head abusively, knocking the strength out of her legs and she slumped to the floor stunned, the skirt billowing out around her. Blushing furiously, she switched lines quickly with a tap. She’d unpack that entire exchange later. 

“Heisuke-kun? Why--”

_ “ _ NO. _ Absolutely not! Definitely, absolutely, no way! You can’t wear that thing to a school like ours! I can’t let you!”  _ His voice was in a high lilt, and she winced slightly at his shouting.  _ “Are you home? I can come over and--” _

The suggestion was so unexpected that she tried to mask her laugh. “Come over--wait, what? Why? It’s late! Heisuke--” 

He cut her off again, his voice sounded dangerously pleading yet angry at the same time. She recognized it only a few times when he was really at a loss for words; or torn between two thoughts. She sighed, wishing she could get her hands on that sneaky brunette right then and there. Who else did he send it to?!

_ “No one should see you in that!” _

Chizuru frowned. “But I’m still wearing it...and besides you just said you want to come over,” she protested, not understanding. “...is it so bad you don’t want to see me in it either?”

A pause.  _ “Wha--NO!! Only I can see you like that! Wait no--I mean, if it’s  _ going _ to be someone I’d rather it --wait, that’s not the point here!! _ ” The next vibrating notification drowned out the last of his sentence and she frowned, opening up the next message. Wait, messages.

_ Sorry, it was too tempting to resist showing you off. Hajime-kun may have beaten me to it first, but I still don’t want to lose to him. _

_ So let me say...you look  _ really _ good, Chizuru-chan. _

She was starting to feel dizzy now and placed a cool hand to her burning cheeks. She was going to faint from all this embarrassment soon.

_ “Chizuru? Chizuru, are you listening to me?! I’m serious, I can’t just let you--” _

She was only able to weakly object against his fussing before her line vibrated again. It was a text message, but this time she didn’t recognize the number. She read it slowly.

_ Yukimura, are you sure you are OK to wear that all day for the festival? I mean you look really cute--no, you look--well, you look beautiful. I just wanted to be sure… _

She blinked, and then pressed the phone back to ear, suddenly remembering Heisuke. “C-Can I call you back, Heisuke? Just give me a minute. I promise, I’ll call you right back!” She didn’t wait to hear a response before she hung up the phone. 

Chizuru blinked, and read the message again so that it could sink in properly. 

She paused for a moment before she wrote back.  _ Um _ ,  _ sorry...who is this?  _

The reply came back immediately.

_ It’s Harada. Sorry...I thought I’d given you my number formally. Is this OK? _

Now her head was really spinning. How on earth her teacher had all the numbers to his students wasn’t far-fetched all things considered...but still confusing nonetheless, and how he also got the attachment of her photo to even write this was even more flustering than she could even imagine. 

But... _ Harada-sensei  _ just called her beautiful. Besides the fact she wasn’t even sure if that was okay in the first place, her body suddenly just felt tingly all over, betraying her sudden thoughts. He was overwhelming like that sometimes.

Yet her hands paused over her keyboard, unsure of what to say next. Hesitatingly, she typed out ‘yes’--a meek thank you, and waited anxiously for a response. 

The next message that came in was not from Harada-senpai, though. She actually knew this number, whether unfortunate or not was yet to be determined.

_ I will  _ NOT _ have my future bride prostrating herself in this manner to amuse my idiot peers. _

The message even carried the deep vibrations of the voice she was all too familiar with. Her hands grasped at the hardwood floors beneath her. She was going to  _ murder  _ Souji when she saw him. What was she even supposed to say to  _ that _ ?!

Thankfully, she didn’t have to respond at all, because her screen lit up again from another call. And from another number she didn’t immediately recognize. Reluctantly, she hit accept.

“Hello?” Her voice even sounded weak now.

_ “Kid, tell me Souji is pulling some prank just to piss me off and you’re not actually thinking of wearing that the entire day.” _ the voice was gruff, and she recognized it immediately.

“Hijikata-sensei…” the words fell off her tongue like a forbidden phrase. Now she was sure she had surpassed all embarrassment and her spirit had absolutely left her body and surpassed into heaven. There was no way she was going to be able to spend a whole day like this.

_ “Well?” _ There was the sound of a sharp inhale on the other end, and immediately Chizuru pictured Hijikata somewhere in his home...maybe on the couch and still in his working clothes, just smoking in the silence, and on the phone with  _ her. _

She shook her head, panicking. If she kept up those kinds of thoughts, they’d betray themselves in her thoughts. Steeling herself, she wasted no time. “He...he’s not. I finally finished working on the costume for the festival on time...thanks to your gift from earlier. I never got the opportunity to thank you properly for it. It made me...really happy.”

_ “Don’t mention it,”  _ he grumbled.  _ “You can consider this thanks enough in return.” _

Her eyebrow raised in question, but before she could ask him what he meant, she heard him grumble something under his breath, and then he chided her to hurry up and go to bed before he bid her goodnight and hung up, never waiting for her reply.

Her heart was hammering in her chest. She pressed her hand to her heart, willing it to stop racing. With shaky hands, she slid her hand behind her back and undid the rest of the bow, preparing herself to change into her clothes. She wanted to bathe and hurry into bed before she changed her mind on the whole thing. She’d have to call Heisuke back too before she rested, but it seemed near impossible to think about right at the moment. 

“Chizuru! Oi, Chizuru! Why does that slacker Okita have pictures of your dressing like a maid in his phone? What is this? Have you become one of  _ those  _ women now?! Oi, answer me!!”

Phone still open and in her hand, it was already open to her inbox so it didn’t vibrate, the simple message just as teasing as she pictured the voice of its sender.

_ Oh! by the way, beware your demon brother. goodnight~!  _

She rolled her eyes at the too-late warning as the pounding on her bedroom door increased and glanced back at herself in the mirror, still adorning even the pigtails. If she answered the door like this, Kaoru would probably lock her up at home forever. 

She sighed. It was going to be a long night.

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>___>....


End file.
